Woman killed by school bus in Philadelphia Pennsylvania

A woman was struck and killed Tuesday morning in Holmesburg by a school bus driven by a trainee, police said.Kristen Fink, 27, of the 4400 block of Decatur Street, was pinned under the bus about 10:45 a.m. on Frankford Avenue near Aldine Street, police said. She was declared dead at the scene.No children were on the bus at the time, and the only other people on board were a supervisor and four fellow trainees.Accident Investigation Division Officer Eddie Velez said the driver, whose name was not released, was authorized to drive in traffic. Velez said he did not believe the driver had violated any traffic laws and did not expect him to be charged."It's just like you're getting a driver's license. You go out on the road and you drive," Velez said about the bus driver program.Police said Fink was crossing the road in the middle of the block when she was struck and then trapped under the right rear tire of the bus."She thought she could beat the traffic, and she didn't," Velez said.The bus was owned by Durham School Services, a company operating school buses in 32 states that the Philadelphia School District contracts to operate some of its buses. The company declined to name the driver or provide information about the driver's record.The company released a statement that said: "We are working with the local authorities to determine the facts of the accident. The driver of our bus was not injured but is very saddened by the events."Pennsylvania Department of Transportation regulations require that school bus drivers complete 14 hours of classroom instruction and six hours of practice on a bus.Every four years, drivers must complete an additional seven hours of classroom time and three hours of bus practice.